TODAY: Former police officer arrested in connection with Politkovskaya case, investigators may know who ordered her killing; Medvedev meets Kim Jong-Il; Russia opposes sanctions on Syria; A Just Russia proposes alliance with Communist Party; Matviyenko looks back on her Governor role; rocket launches suspended; airplane accidents double year-on-year; soldiers killed in blast.

Retired police lieutenant colonel Dmitry Pavlyuchenkov has been arrested on suspicion of organising the criminal group that carried out the murder of Anna Politkovskaya.  Further reports suggest that investigators know who ordered her killing, but officials say ‘it is too early to make this information public’, and the lawyer for Politkovskaya’s family has spoken of ‘a turning point’ in the investigation.  Talks between President Dmitry Medvedev and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il have begun in Siberia.  Russia continues to oppose a freeze on the assets of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and an arms embargo: ‘We hope to see progress [and] we think we should continue to work within the scope of that position.’  A parliamentary foreign affairs committee head warned, ‘I would advise all countries thinking about Syria to keep in mind the negative example of Libya.’